THE PARABLE OF THE RICH FOOL – Part 3 of 3

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:19-21 ESV)

In the parable of the rich fool (Luke 12) the man was keeping things to himself. Covetousness had conquered his heart. He was not generous, and he was not rich toward God.

If you haven’t noticed, the parable commends generosity. Why? Several reasons. First, it commends generosity for the simple reason that we can’t keep what we own. We can’t take it with us when we die…

Why else? Because generosity breaks the power of greed and frees our heart from covetousness. Holding our possessions tightly endangers our faith. It constantly temps us to transfer our trust from God to riches… The history of Israel, as seen in Deuteronomy 8, illustrates the truth of this. When Israel was blessed, it started to trust in blessings and not the giver of blessings… they forgot the Lord. They eventually pursued wealth as an end in itself. It became an idol. The longer and tighter you hold on to your possessions, the more covetous you get.

Why else does the parable commend generosity? Thirdly, because riches laid up in heaven are the most secure. They truly last.  D. L. Moody once met a wealthy farmer. Boasting, the farmer said, “Everything you can see for miles is mine. Look to the south. Look to the north. It’s all mine.” Moody pointed to heaven. “How much do you have in that direction?”

When we are rich toward God, what we have can never be taken away. 

-- Excerpted from “How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half” by Donald W. Sweeting & George Sweeting

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THE PARABLE OF THE RICH FOOL – Part 2 of 3

What’s your attitude toward things? As we see in Jesus’ parable of the rich fool, one of the inclinations in the second half of life is to worry about security, to grasp and to stockpile. Many of us hold and store much. We may not have barns, but our closets, basements, and garages are full.

The rich man in the parable made two false assumptions. First, he counted on having many years -- which he didn’t. His life was about to abruptly end. Second, he supposed he could hang on to his stuff, which he couldn’t. God said, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” (Luke 12:20 ESV)  The answer: not yours! They will pass into someone else’s hands within the next twenty-four hours. “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” (Vs. 21)

The man was stingy. He was keeping things to himself. Covetousness had conquered his heart. He was not generous, and he was not rich toward God.

-- Excerpted from “How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half” by Donald W. Sweeting & George Sweeting 

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IN JARS OF CLAY

“We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”  (2 Corinthians 4:7 NIV)

In this passage, we find Paul trying to help his readers see the glory of our heavenly Father in the dust of everyday experience. That’s what makes a huge difference in this life: seeing things from God’s perspective. Paul was showing that it can be done because God has been revealed in human form through Jesus Christ, the ultimate Treasure in an earthly vessel -- flesh and blood. All the eternal and infinite glory of God shined through the humanity of His Son, who was fully human and yet fully divine. Jesus’ enemies saw Him as just another man, but behind those eyes dwelt the one true God… We have this treasure, the ministry of Christ, in our “earthly vessels,” our frail and imperfect human bodies.

This is a difficult concept to understand, but Paul always had a handy word picture available. This time he used the idea of a clay jar. If there was one absolutely ordinary, run-of-the-mill object that everyone in the Middle East could understand it was the clay jar. Cheap pottery was everywhere and used for everything. The jars were breakable, but it didn’t matter because it was so easy to get another one. Clay earthenware was as common as -- well, as the clay beneath one’s feet.

A clay pot had absolutely no value in itself. Everyone knew that. On the other hand, it could hold a priceless pearl, a gold piece, a bite of bread to fend of hunger, a day’s drink of water, a wedding ring… It wasn’t the jar but the treasure inside that counted. 

-- David Jeremiah in “Keep the Faith: How to Stand Strong in a World Turned Upside Down” 

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THE ROLE OF THE FAUCET

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.”  (1 Corinthians 3:6-7 NIV)

Don’t make the mistake the associates of Lawrence of Arabia made. He took them to Paris after World War 1. They had never seen such sights. The Arc de Triomphe, Napoleon’s tomb, the Champs Elysees. But nothing impressed these men from the Arabian Desert more than the faucet in the bathtub of their hotel room. They turned it on and off, on and off, amazed that with a twist of the wrist they could have all the water they wanted.

When the time came to leave Paris and return to the east, Lawrence found them in the bathroom with wrenches, trying to disconnect the spout. “We need faucets,” they explained. “If we have them, we will have all the water we want.”

They didn’t understand the role of the faucet. Spouts carry water, not produce it. Spigots are the tool, not the source. The valve might direct fluid, but generate it? No. We know this…

Or do we? Through what faucets has God poured His love into your life? A faithful church or small group? A pastor or youth leader? A prayerful parent or spouse? Time-tested traditions or contemporary praise songs? A girlfriend in college or a grandma from childhood? God’s water passes through many faucets. His gift comes in many packages. The treasure, however, is not the plumbing or the box, not the container of the gift. No, the treasure is the Giver Himself! 

-- Adapted from Max Lucado in “Come Thirsty: No Heart Too Dry for His Touch”

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A BAROMETER OF SPIRITUAL MATURITY

Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:21 NIV)

I think it’s easy to talk about things like faith and obedience and compassion in abstract terms.  The more abstract, the less convicting the truth is.  So let me get concrete.  Faith equals God-ordained risks in the face of fear.  Obedience equals God-honoring decisions in the face of temptation.  And compassion equals Spirit-prompted generosity in the face of greed.

If you really want to know how I‘m doing spiritually, all you need to do is look at my checkbook.  It doesn’t lie.  It reveals my priorities.  It reveals my passions.  And it doesn’t just reveal how I’m doing financially; it reveals how I’m doing spiritually.  It’s one of the best barometers of spiritual maturity I know of.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’m certainly not reducing compassion to a financial transaction.  I think generosity has as much to do with time and energy as it does with money.  But sometimes love is measured in dollars. 

-- Mark Batterson in “PRIMAL: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity”

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INVESTMENT IN THE LORD’S WORK

“Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:20-21)

The only investments I ever made which paid constantly increasing dividends are those I have given to the Lord's work. Pastors do their congregation a great service by helping those in the church understand God's truth about money, time and giving.

-- J. L. Kraft, Founder of Kraft Foods 

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LONGING FOR HEAVEN

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:19-21 NKJV)

Deep within our inner being, the human spirit groans to rid itself of this mortal flesh and enter into the very presence of God to enjoy Him forever. That one holy passion -- placed within us by God Himself -- cries out from the depths of our being for eternity. 

Unfortunately, despite this God-given longing for Heaven, we have become too attached to this world. Instead of laying up treasure in Heaven, we treasure the riches of this earth. Resisting the inner voice of conscience, we tell ourselves, “Heaven can wait.”

But Heaven can’t wait! No way!

We must live for eternity today! 

-- Steven J. Lawson in “Heaven Help Us: Truths About Eternity That Will Help You Live Today”

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OUR IDENTITY IN CHRIST

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  (Matthew 6:19-21)

I firmly believe that our lives are God's gift to us. What we do with our lives is our gift to God. My treasure isn't the gold medal, it's how I share this experience with others. What I bring back to them that can help them with their lives...

Through my faith, I've learned that my identity cannot be caught up with winning a gold medal. The fame of being an Olympic medalist wears off. Nothing else in this world will last. That's why you have to have your identity in Christ. 

-- Sheila Taormina, 1996 gold medal Olympic swimmer, 2000 & 2004 Olympic triathlete, 2008 Olympic modern pentathlete, the first woman to qualify for the Olympics in three different sports.

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